1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an apparatus for supplying a stack of carton blanks from a pallet to the magazine of a carton-packing machine in which the carton blanks are arranged vertically adjacent to each other.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In particular in the tobacco industry, but also in other fields of packing technology, carton blanks are delivered on pallets in such a manner that the folded-out, still flat carton blanks are stacked horizontally one above the other. The individual blanks are then removed from this stack and supplied to the magazine of the carton-packing machine.
Attempts have already been made to automate the individual steps of the blank supply; thus German Offenlegungsschrift 3,001,733 discloses an apparatus for filling a blank magazine with carton blanks in which a reserve magazine with a stack of horizontally disposed carton blanks is arranged vertically above the actual magazine of the carton-packing machine. From the stack of the reserve magazine the individual carton blanks drop vertically downwardly into the magazine so that the latter is continuously filled with carton blanks up to a predetermined height. This apparatus is not suitable for transferring carton blanks from a pallet.
Furthermore, published European patent application 33,799 discloses an apparatus for removing carton blanks from a blank stack in which the entire blank stack including its support is pivotable about a horizontal axis so that the individual carton blanks are disposed on each other and thereby spread out in the manner of a fan. The respective lowermost carton blank lies on a conveying means so that the carton blanks are carried away individually from below and placed on a stack from where they are again individually withdrawn from below. However, this apparatus also cannot be used to transfer a stack of carton blanks from a pallet because the necessary pivot movement of the pallet with the blank stack is problematical. In addition, this apparatus requires a lot of space.
It is therefore still usual to remove individually by hand carton blanks arranged in a stack on a pallet and to place said blanks in vertical position into the magazine of the carton-packing machine. This manual loading is, however, tedious and complicated; in addition, the working speed of the carton-packing machine can vary at any time because it depends inter alia, on the production speed of the product to be packaged and is influenced, for example, by production interruptions. There is no continuous predetermined rhythm for feeding the carton blanks to the carton-packing machine so that the magazine must be constantly observed and filled up again when necessary.